The prior art of snow shovels, shovel blades, and the like shows various implements for clearing snow and ice from surfaces. One type of device employs teeth for cutting ice; the teeth are stamped out of the body of the shovel blade. Another device employs a broom in combination with a shovel; both broom and shovel are independently attached to a common handle. Another device employs wheels fixed to the outer sides of the shovel blade; the wheels keep the leading edge of the shovel blade a predetermined distance from the surface to be cleaned.
It is an object of the invention herein disclosed to provide a novel shovel blade having an attached set of semirigid bristles, disposed a suitable distance behind the leading edge of the blade which serve the multiple functions of, first, controlling the angle of attack of the leading edge of the blade with respect to the surface being cleared; second, scraping snow and ice by virtue of the semirigid character of the bristles; and, third, chopping ice when raised and lowered perpendicularly to the surface to be cleared.
A further objective of the invention is to provide a novel hand-held shovel incorporating the novel shovel blade of the invention.
Another objective of the invention is to provide a novel shovel blade having an attached set of semirigid bristles adjacent to the leading edge of the shovel blade which serve the multiple functions of, first, preventing the leading edge of the shovel blade from coming too close to the surface to be cleared so as not to be blocked or damaged by small surface irregularities; second, allowing the leading edge of the blade to effectively ride over small surface irregularities; and, third, to scrape the surface to be cleaned.
Another objective of the invention is to provide a machine-mounted shovel blade such as used on automotive snow plowing apparatus incorporating the novel shovel blade of the invention.
These and other objectives are accomplished by the invention as described below.